{"id":811653,"date":"2026-07-20T06:01:16","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T06:01:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/811653\/"},"modified":"2026-07-20T06:01:16","modified_gmt":"2026-07-20T06:01:16","slug":"world-cup-final-halftime-show-response-a-breakdown-of-the-bizarre-performances-from-madonna-bts-shakira-and-more-as-celebrities-sound-off","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/811653\/","title":{"rendered":"World Cup Final halftime show response: A breakdown of the bizarre performances from Madonna, BTS, Shakira and more as celebrities sound off"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Robert<\/p>\n

Updated July 20, 2026 \u2014 10:45am,first published July 20, 2026 \u2014 7:49am<\/p>\n

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The World Cup final delivered the game\u2019s first half-time show ever \u2013 and hopefully the last, judging by reactions from pundits and celebrities.<\/p>\n

Former England striker Wayne Rooney, broadcasting for BBC Sport, said the best part of the performance \u2013 which featured Madonna, Justin Bieber and the Muppets \u2013 was when it finished. \u201cI like a lot of them artists but I thought it was crap,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"WhatWhat a way to begin! Madonna on the big screen during the half-time show.AP Photo\/Frank Franklin II<\/p>\n

Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher approved of Bieber\u2019s set \u2013 \u201cJustin rules,\u201d he posted on X \u2013 but he wasn\u2019t so fond of the rest of it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is like a bad trip,\u201d he posted. \u201cIt\u2019s a good job I\u2019ve got my spiritual socks on or that half-time entertainment could have tipped me over the edge.\u201d<\/p>\n

After a nervy first half, viewers were given a fever dream of a half-time performance \u2013 one that lasted a record 27 minutes and 22 seconds \u2013 to relieve the tension. But this was no Super Bowl level extravaganza.<\/p>\n

Madonna opened up the show singing her hit Music from an underground rollerskating rink, in a car being driven by Brazilian legends Ronaldinho and Ronaldo. Before you could even crack a joke about their tracksuits, the action whiplashed elsewhere.<\/p>\n

Then it was a sudden shift to the Muppets, with composer Gustavo Dudamel doing the White Stripes\u2019 iconic Seven Nation Army. It must\u2019ve had Jack White turning in his grave (because he sleeps in a coffin, probably).<\/p>\n

\"MissMiss Piggy, Kermit the Frog and other Muppets performed during the half-time show.Getty Images\"TheThe Ted Lasso cast join the performance.AP Photo\/Reed Hoffmann<\/p>\n

K-pop icons BTS, in all red, slipped into their smash Dynamite, before they got interrupted by Ted Lasso stars Jason Sudeikis and Brendan Hunt, who subbed in edgy Hillsong priest Justin Bieber and his acoustic guitar for a chilled out Everything Hallelujah.<\/p>\n

Colombian star Shakira brought some appropriate World Cup energy, performing the tournament\u2019s anthem Dai Dai with Burna Boy. What would FIFA do without Shakira? Probably a whole show with the Muppets.<\/p>\n

\"TomTom Cruise addresses the crowd before the game.Getty Images\"It\u2019sIt\u2019s no Beauty and a Beat, but it\u2019s Justin Bieber we got.Getty\"PostPost Malone donned a cheeky shirt for the opening ceremony: \u201cI just hope both teams have fun\u201d.Getty Images<\/p>\n

Before the game, Tom Cruise, dressed like a backstage roadie, delivered a stirring speech from the middle of the pitch like he was the Gandalf of futbol.<\/p>\n

\u201cFootball is a language spoken without words, a force that unites people, that turns strangers to friends,\u201d he said, before announcing the teams \u2013 \u201cEspana y Argentina\u201d \u2013 with all the cultural respect of an SBS commentator.<\/p>\n

\"ShakiraShakira dances on the stage.Getty Images<\/p>\n

Post Malone also popped up in a cowboy hat and the tightest Canadian tuxedo you\u2019ll see, performing his new song Chrome Heartbreaker, a return to his rap roots after going country, before bringing out Swae Lee for the Spiderverse hit Sunflowers.<\/p>\n

It all made about as much sense as the phrase \u201cNew York New Jersey\u201d. Let us never revisit this again.<\/p>\n

Spotted in the stands for the game were A-listers including Will Ferrell, Pharrell Williams, Adrien Brody, Matt Damon (with his Argentinian wife Luciana Barroso), Trevor Noah in a Spain shirt, and San Antonio Spurs superstar Victor Wembanyama.<\/p>\n

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\"RobertRobert Moran<\/a> is Spectrum deputy editor at The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via email<\/a>.From our partners<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Updated July 20, 2026 \u2014 10:45am,first published July 20, 2026 \u2014 7:49am Save You have reached your maximum…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":811654,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[64,63,134,136],"class_list":["post-811653","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-music","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-entertainment","tag-music"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/811653","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=811653"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/811653\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/811654"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=811653"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=811653"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=811653"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}